Needs and Wants
by iAir Nomad
Summary: Sometimes birthday gifts just aren't enough. Yuugi wanted to see his other self so terribly... Puzzleshipping.


"Yuugi! Wake up, sleepyhead!"

This was Jonouchi's voice, Yuugi instantly realized, even in his half-awake, half-asleep state of mind. Jonouchi was currently stationed at the end of Yuugi's bed, lightly shaking Yuugi's feet in a physical attempt to bring the boy to greet the day. But Yuugi just tossed him a half-hearted glare over the thick blanket and a groan of annoyance for the disturbance of his wonderful slumber. When he'd seen Jonouchi over the line of the blanket, he realized all of his other friends were here, too. Every single one of them: Honda, Otogi, Anzu, Ryou, Malik, Shizuka, even Mai. All of them were in some position or another around his room, whether leaning against the door or a section of the wall, or at the foot of the bed with Jonouchi. All of them were smiling down at him.

"Come on, are you really going to just lie in bed and waste away your birthday? We've got big plans for you, man!" Jonouchi cheerfully insisted.

Now the addressed couldn't ignore them, no matter how hard he'd try. It just wasn't in his nature. He could never turn away an offer to spend an abundant amount of time with all of these wonderful people in one sitting. It was so rare to have everyone gathered in the same location, and for _his_ special day, no less. Sometimes Yuugi still tried to wrap around his head that these people cared just that much about him; cared enough to want to celebrate this day with him. The now-18-year-old smiled at this thought, sitting up a little more to rest the back of his head against the head board of his bed, scanning the room and directing his smile to each and every one of his friends. These people were in his life because of a certain ancient Egyptian Pharaoh. Yuugi felt his heart heavy momentarily; that was the one person that was missing that he longed to see here. But he'd passed to the afterlife nearly two years ago following their Ceremonial Duel, and he couldn't bring himself to hope that he'd see his other self any time soon. It would hurt him too much in the long run.

Realizing that he hadn't said anything for a stretch of time, he laughed at the way Jonouchi shoved his hands in his pockets and fiddled his hands around, as though searching for something, but clearly just trying to find an excuse to do something to avoid the awkwardness that filled the room at Yuugi's silence.

"Well, now that you're up, why don't you get ready? We've got all kinds of things in store for you!" Anzu spoke, tilting her head with a bright grin.

"Oh, yeah, sure! Where are we going?" Yuugi asked, shoving off the blanket and moving to sit at the edge of the bed.

"Well, we figured doing some arcade things for an hour or two might be fun, and then we wanted to take you to the beach. Maybe get your favorite noodles at that noodle stand over there for a birthday dinner treat." Honda also grinned.

Yuugi brightened at these activity ideas; the whole room could be glowing with that smile. "Awesome! I'll get ready then, and meet you guys downstairs in the Game Shop." He said, already getting up to rummage through his closet for something presentable to wear for the public.

He had such incredible friends. But yet again, the thought passed and whispered in his mind about how it was such a shame that his closest one was missing, and unable to attend.

But he liked to believe that his other self was somewhere up there, watching him grow up to be the now-young adult that he was becoming with pride.

* * *

The day had been spent splendidly, involving presents stuffed in the trunk of Mai's car, ranging from all sizes and quality. Yuugi gaped at the sight; there were so many! But he had to restrain his growing urge to dive into the pile in vicious curiosity of what each box contained—a rather childish quality that never really left. Yuugi and his friends spent an hour at the arcade, as promised, and made it quite frank that they were going to play every single available game, no matter how unappealing. It ended up in a very heated Race Car battle between Jonouchi and Mai, with Jonouchi swearing up a storm right and left and thus leaving Yuugi responsible to keep reminding him that there were children here and to quiet down before they got kicked out. It was no surprise that they almost had been.

Afterwards, they all traveled down to the coast and spent a good portion of the day playing under the brilliant shine and warmth of the sun. This ended up as a tickling fight between Anzu and Yuugi in the ocean. The boy squirmed and gasped with laughter under her cleverly-moving fingers on his torso, in turn causing Anzu to release a bubbling laugh of her own. She relented when Yuugi asked her to stop, though. As per usual, Jonouchi and Honda got into some stubborn fight. The reason was unknown, but they ceased their aggressive actions when they spotted Yuugi watching them with a concerned brow on the shore. This was enough to forcibly remind them that this day was about Yuugi and his happiness, not to start something ridiculous and over such trivial subjects.

As the sun started to move lower in the sky and announce the late afternoon, the group all went to the noodle stand. Yuugi happily ordered his favorite dish, and they all sat on the sand, delving into their food, joking, laughing, musing, and enjoying their time together to the fullest. Cake and presents were shared throughout. Once the sky transformed into splendid rays of orange and yellow for the sunset, they gathered their bags and things and left the coast to return Yuugi home.

And now here he was, sitting on a swing in a local park, abandoned at this time save for the occasional couple walking leisurely down the path, or a jogger. Yuugi was smiling to himself as he reflected back on his day. Everything had gone as perfect as he'd imagined it would be, and he couldn't ask for anything more.

Except…

A small sigh escaped his parted lips, and he tilted his head to lean it against one of the chains suspending the swing, watching the sunset grow increasingly beautiful by the minute with his hands carefully placed in his lap. His day was basically perfect, as thought before, but… he still had a heavy feeling of sorrow in the deep depths of his heart. He wished so much that his other self could experience these joyful occasions with him, as he had always done in the past the moment they became aware of each other's existence. Like the day of his birthday three years ago…

"_Do you intend to sleep forever, Aibou?" A deep, rich chuckle followed the soft, baritone-voiced question. _

_The young fifteen-year-old grinned at his spirit counterpart with his eyes as he peered up at his ghostly form from over the blanket. "Why does everyone have to wake me up so early for my birthday?" He sighed a little, snuggling more into his pillow in physical protest and closing his eyes again._

"_Well I imagine you have quite a number of activities throughout the day that your friends want to spend with you." The spirit smiled at the adorable way his partner groaned again and pulled the covers up over his head from the sun's glare through his skylight, painting his face with light. How fitting for his little Hikari, whose soul and smile was happiness and light, itself._

"_Mm, I just want to sleep, though…" _

_Another deep chuckle rumbled in his other self's chest. "If you say so, Aibou. That's not my decision to make, after all, but I figured I'd be doing you a favor by getting you up earlier than usual." He hummed, folding his arms and still staring down at the little one. "So don't complain to me when your friends barge in here to wake you far more roughly than I ever could."_

"_Fine, fine, I'll get up," Yuugi sighed heavily, sitting up and rubbing an eye with a fist to adjust his vision to that fierce sunlight that craved his attention. The spirit smiled at that and watched Yuugi stand up and approach his closet, digging through and grabbing some comfortable day-clothes. With said articles of clothing in hand, the spirit also stood and moved to give him a strong hug from behind before the boy could go anywhere. In spite of the fact that he was a see-through apparition, unable to feel much from the contact on both their ends, he could visibly see his partner tense at the sight of his arms suddenly wrapped loosely around his collarbone area, and he could almost feel the shiver the arose when he leaned down to whisper in his ear with a grin, "Happy birthday, Aibou. I'm excited to celebrate with you today." _

In the present, Yuugi smiled a little more again when he recalled just how he felt in that moment. He'd never really been so close to the spirit before then, and he had to admit, the gesture was very straightforward and surprising. But that was typical characteristic of his other self. Yuugi chuckled softly at this thought. It was a quality that he'd come to love, depending on the circumstances in which the characteristic was presented.

"Mou Hitori no Boku…" he sighed. "I miss you… so much. I wish you could be here." He murmured, lightly kicking the ground to give the swing some movement, but it came to stop again just moments later. "But I'll bet you're happy up there. I hope you check in every now and again to watch the progress of my strength. My life has never been so good now, and it's all because of you. But… I miss you…"

When came the expected silence, Yuugi looked downcast to watch his feet hovering a little above the bark chips that littered the ground of the park in more musing.

However, his thoughts were brought to an abrupt halt and twirled violently a millisecond later when he felt a pair of warm, strong arms circle around his upper chest. He felt his body being pulled back a little into a perfectly sculpted, equally warm chest, and he heard his own breaths change to a rapid pace. His eyes bulged and a shock overcame him when he felt lips just centimeters from his ear, whispering into it: "Happy birthday, Aibou. I'm excited to celebrate with you tonight. And celebrate my very existence with you every single day, as I had always done."

Yuugi let out a large breath, then inhaled a gasp, then gasped back out a breath. "Mou Hitori no… Boku?" He dared to utter.

He felt a chuckle against his shoulder. "You still call me that even after I insisted that there is only _one_ Yuugi?"

Yuugi felt a lump form in his throat, and his eyes watered with a fresh batch of warm tears. He continued to watch the sunset ahead, afraid that if he turned around, his other self's arms would fade to nothing but a memory again. But his eyes were blurred, and all he could see was an orange and red haze, somehow increasing the power of his emotions in this moment. "I thought you were gone… forever…"

"You have no idea… I had to go through hell and back to reach you. I doubt the Gods are happy with me, as I tested their patience. But things worked out in the end." The arms around Yuugi tightened and cuddled him close, and for the first time in his life… he felt his other self's strength. He felt his longing. He felt a beautiful heartbeat against his shoulder blade, and the warmth that came from this embrace. He felt his other self's solidness, as real and true as ever. The tears silently streamed down and a broken sob escaped him when he felt his other self's nose and lips press against the back of his head and nuzzling the spot gently.

"Aibou?" He heard the taller whisper questioningly, not liking the soft, uneven gasps of sobs that his partner was making. He couldn't tell if they were of happiness or something else he wanted to avoid thinking about. But he couldn't avoid his Aibou's emotions; if they were not of happiness or gladness to see him, then he had to accept that this had all been a horrible idea to begin with, and he would leave him alone. But… that couldn't be it… could it?

When the smaller didn't respond, the spirit became concerned. "Aibou?" He prodded again, gently, loosening his hold around Yuugi to bring them back down to his sides. Suddenly, the late teen grabbed his arms in a death grip and held them against his chest again. "No…" he whispered, light as a feather. He hiccupped. "You're not allowed to leave me again… not ever again… never…" he said, bringing his head down against a collarbone. He swallowed, but the threatening lump in his throat remained. Without a second thought, he pressed his lips to the hands linked against him, which were an attractive bronze shade. "You are never leaving my side again, you are not going to disappear… Mou Hitori no Boku, stay with me forever…" he continued, mumbling relevant sentences until eventually they faded into incoherent ones mixed with more gentle sobs and kisses to his other self's hands.

The taller responded immediately and decisively, giving a soft sigh and tilting his head forward to nuzzle the side of his head against Yuugi's. Neither of them questioned their sudden affectionate gestures, simply relishing this moment in which they were two solid forms outside of the Sennen Puzzle, and it was going to be that way… forever. "Aibou…" the other whispered, mixed with both sorrowful and relieved emotions, "I will be by your side now and beyond death. You are everything I ever need. Everything I've ever wanted… to hold, to love eternally… please allow me to do so now."

Yuugi felt a new rush of tears from this small confession. Finally, finally he sucked in a breath and turned around in the seat of the swing, not looking up until he'd situated himself so that he faced his other now. Then, his eyes came up and landed to rest on ever-loving crimsons gazing back. His breath was stolen at the handsome, tanned face of the former Egyptian Pharaoh. He had to reach up both hands to grip the chains of the swing to keep himself from falling off, and his breath came short and ragged again.

Atemu… that was his true name. But for some reason he couldn't bring himself to utter it. The Pharaoh would forever remain as his other half; the half of his soul, the half of his heart that completed him. It could never be anything different. Yuugi's brows came together in a small crease, and he looked down while closing his eyes, hoping the tear tracks would disappear soon. Almost as soon as this thought entered his mind, he felt a pair of thumbs rub his cheeks, to cease them. Yuugi looked back up just in time to watch the Pharaoh brush his fingertips lingeringly along his face, then his hands reached over to rest on top of Yuugi's gripping the chains. Yuugi didn't need a warning to know what was coming next, and he tried to prepare his heart for it. His other self leaned down slowly, allowing their noses to contact in a feathery touch. Both of their eyes drifted shut, and the taller leaned in more to just touch his lips to Yuugi's. Yuugi realized his heart wasn't at all prepared for this, and it leaped and danced a jig, pounding eagerly against his chest. "I love you, Aibou. I will take care of you now. Let us finish your birthday properly now." He murmured against Yuugi's lips, and the smaller shivered at the tickle of the action.

All thoughts ceased and the world no longer existed as the lips of Yuugi's other self brushed gently against his, then suddenly pressed firmly. He felt his bottom lip become captured between two soft pairs, and the Pharaoh tilted his head to drop their jaws and deepen the kiss as much as he dared to. Their hands still clasped together on the chains of the swing, Yuugi eagerly leaned up and met his depth. The kiss didn't evolve much after that, and in fact, the Pharaoh gently severed it a few moments later to gaze with half-lidded eyes into the bright amethysts of his sweet Aibou. One hand released from Yuugi's on the chain to cradle his cheek with a smile that caused a shiver to run up Yuugi's spine again. A smile like that… was meant only for him, he realized. The smile evolved into a grin as the bronzed one closed his eyes again to brush his lips on Yuugi's forehead caringly. Yuugi closed his own eyes once more, crumbling willingly into the older one's arms, his head falling to rest just under his chin. Perfect Yami, kissing his head again and holding him so closely and protectively like a precious artifact; giving him the only thing he ever truly wanted on this day; all he could ever want.

* * *

Ishizu glanced over her shoulder when she heard the door open and close faintly across the room, smiling at her younger brother who'd just walked in from the day's festivities with Yuugi Mutou. "Malik." She acknowledged. "Did you have fun today?"

Malik chuckled, waving a hand at her. "Yeah, it was fun." He plopped himself down on a chair and sighed, closing his eyes and leaning his head back.

Ishizu nodded, resuming washing the dishes. Before she would inquire about anything else that happened, she needed to know something. "Malik… did the Pharaoh get to him safely and timely? Did you talk to him?"

Malik breathed a content sigh through his nose, his lips twitching up into a smile that expressed satisfaction. "Yeah, he got to him alright."

Ishizu mirrored his expression, turning her head back around to look forward and look out the window to the stars that began to make their regular nightly appearance as the sun drifted over the mountains. She chuckled once. She didn't even need her Millennium Necklace to know exactly what has occurred between the yami and hikari at this point. "Good."

* * *

**So yeah. Kind of pointless fluff I had to get out of my system. Heheheh… **

**R&R!**


End file.
